Mozilla Making Its Own Open Source IoT Computer Called Chirimen

Short Bytes: In December, when Mozilla announced that it’s killing Firefox OS for smartphones, it stressed that the project will remain alive on connected and IoT devices. Fulfilling its promise, Mozilla has announced that it’s developing an IoT single-board computer called Chirimen that will allow “Web developers to MAKE Real things that are connected to the Web via Browser technologies”.

fossBytes regularly brings to you the latest and biggest news from the open source world. While we cover news about open source software from time to time, today we’ll be telling you about an open source hardware from one of the most respected advocates of open source technologies. Mozilla, the organization behind Firefox browser and Thunderbird, is working on its upcoming IoT single-board computer called Chirimen. Earlier this December, Mozilla announced that it’s

Mozilla, the organization behind Firefox browser and Thunderbird, is working on its upcoming IoT single-board computer called Chirimen. Earlier this December, Mozilla announced that it’s killing its Firefox OS for phones but the OS will continue to thrive on other connected and IoT devices. In our best technology predictions of 2016 list, IoT secured one of the top positions. Realizing the same possibility of growth, the advent of Chirimen is being seen as a step in the same direction to promote Firefox OS.

Chirimen is being developed by MozillaFactory.org in Japan as a development board for web developers for making IoT devices by utilizing the capabilities of Firefox OS. “CHIRIMEN Board is designed for Web developers to MAKE Real things that are connected to the Web via Browser technologies,” writes MozillaFactory website.

Chirimen provides an easy way to make:

Chirimen extends the capabilities like GPIO/I2C WebAPIs to control devices with Firefox OS 2.0 and higher. For the curious souls, here’s a fun fact: the name Chirimen is derived from the traditional Japanese silk weaving technique.

“Web developers maintain own ordinary development style while working on Chirimen,” Mozilla writes.

Open and neutral hardware and firmware:

The board is made with open source hardware with general purpose input/output ports to connect and program components like buttons, LEDS, sensors and other parts.

Mozilla promises to share openly the firmware code, manufacturing process, board design, API specifications etc.

mozilla chirimen board iot computer

Hardware specifications of Mozilla’s Chirimen IoT computer:

SoC RK3066
DDR3 1GB(RAM)
NAND Flash 1GB
1 MicroSD slot
Video micro HDMI female
Dimension 80 mm x 48 mm
USB microUSB x 1 (OTG) , USB x 1 , microUSB x 1 (UART debug)
WiFI (not on board. Use RTL8188CUS compatible USB WiFi adaptor )
GPIO >1(configurable)
I2C 2
UART 2
SPI 2
Audio analog stereo IN x 1 / OUT x 1
PWM 1
Analog IN x 1

The open source organization has a strong and loyal fanbase and this factor could help Chirimen to get an initial boost in the market. Betting on the bright future of IoT, Mozilla is investing its time and money in this IoT development board. Mozilla Chirimen is currently under development and you’ll have to wait for some time to buy one. The pricing hasn’t been confirmed yet, but expect a price tag of less than $50.

Stay tuned with fossBytes, we’ll keep you updated with the latest developments related to Chirimen.

Images: MozillaFactory.org

Also read: How is Firefox OS Different from Android, iOS, Windows Phone and Ubuntu Touch